To Sleep
by Corianin
Summary: It was a long case. A long day at work. And all Mulder was thinking of was relaxing and maybe paying a visit to his partner. Strange how things work out.


Author's note: So while I was in the middle of writing the next chapter of WaterFlame, this little tidbit began using my brain as a trampoline. It wasn't going to let me alone until I wrote it, so I did. I have to admit it was fun.

This takes place after Scully's abduction...pretty much anytime after, really. It doesn't adhere to any specific timeline or story arc, so put it where you want. :)

* * *

_I am so glad today is finally done._

With a weary groan, Mulder leaned against the wall of the elevator as it rumbled up to his floor. It had been an absolutely horrid day. Paperwork, paperwork, and more paperwork...and no Scully in sight. She'd taken a personal day, and he couldn't blame her – though having walked into his office to see the heaps of documents on his desk he could and did envy her. Their last case had been a bitch, and it hit her hard. She'd always been sensitive to the plights of children, and he didn't begrudge her a chance to escape and unwind for a day. Besides, it was Friday, and they'd only gotten back from Wyoming at ten o'clock the night before. God knows he'd taken enough three-day weekends. She was more than entitled to one. Still, not having her around...not being able to see that exasperated look she usually reserved just for him...not being able to watch her try to hide a smile beneath a stern facade when he occasionally turned a sheet of paperwork into an airplane to fly across the room or do something equally silly; his world had come to revolve not around their cases, his pressing need for the truth, but around her smile. In his own mind he could let his thoughts run rampant, but in the real world neither of them was ready to let that final wall come down. There were still too many obstacles, too many barriers. And if he were totally honest with himself, he was too afraid of losing what they had, the closeness they shared, to push for something more. If this was all the closer he could ever be to her, then he could still die happy.

His disjointed and rambling thoughts kept him company as the elevator doors parted and he trudged down the hallway, fishing his keys from his pocket as he did so. A faint sound tickled his ears, growing steadily louder as he approached his doorway, and he blinked when he realized he must have left one of his movies running on repeat. The gasps and moans were faint behind the door, but still audible in the deserted hallway, and he felt sheepish at the thought that he'd had the volume up loud enough to be heard outside his apartment. Sticking the key in the lock, he idly wondered what his neighbors had thought, then decided he really didn't care – not now, at least. Now all he wanted was to get inside, take a hot shower, maybe call Scully, see if she was up to a visit. He might have to bribe her with Chinese food. A small chuckle escaped his lips as he realized exactly how whipped he really was. _Can't even go a day without getting twitchy. Man, you've got it bad._ Acknowledging the truth of that inner voice, he pushed his door open and stepped inside. Turning to lock it behind him, he was in the process of taking off his tie when he turned back around. And froze.

"_Mmmm...god, right there..."_

The tie slithered, forgotten, to the floor, his jaw joining it as he watched the scene in his living room unfold.

_God, they're beautiful._

He'd never imagined Scully – HIS Scully – could act so...so...his muddled brain didn't even know the word. His petite partner was kneeling on his couch, facing the wall, her hands braced on the couch back. Nude. Absolutely, gloriously nude. Her back was arched, he head tilted forward, and in profile he could see that her mouth was open as she panted and moaned. Eagerly his eyes roamed over her creamy skin, her rounded breasts, her trim waist, those legs he'd fantasized about so often. _Those suits she wears need to be burned for hiding such a treasure_, he thought, his mind in a lust-fueled overdrive. An overdrive that certainly wasn't calmed as he turned his attention to the equally naked man who was currently grinding himself slowly into her.

His first opinion of Alex Krycek had been one of amusement tinged with annoyance. A green agent, no fashion sense, eager to make a name for himself...overall the man hadn't impressed him. He was remarkably attractive, though – Mulder might have gone so far as to say he was pretty, with those incredibly green eyes and lashes long enough and dark enough to be the envy of any woman. It had been an idle thought at the time; though Mulder had no problem playing for both teams, he'd never given more than a passing thought to what Krycek would be like in bed.

_Maybe I should have._

Lean, toned, every movement deliberate and precise...Mulder's mouth went completely dry as he watched Krycek fuck his partner. The other man's hands roamed gently, caressingly, over Scully's sweat-damp skin. One had her hip in an iron grip, holding her in place as he drove into her at an almost languid pace. As Mulder watched, the other hand moved up slowly, running along her spine, sliding across her ribcage, to gently grasp her breast. The moan the redhead let out as he began to tug her nipple went straight to Mulder's already painful erection, but he couldn't tear his eyes away. With her kneeling on the couch she was at the perfect height to take him, and the way she arched back against him made it obvious that she wanted more, wanted her lover to go harder, faster. Mulder had the absent thought that he had to give Krycek credit for not taking what she so wantonly offered. Instead the other man seemed to delight in teasing her, in hearing her whimper. His eyes gleamed as he leaned down to whisper something in her ear, and Mulder heard her throaty chuckle. And then two sets of eyes met his, and the intensity and power in those green and blue depths stole his breath away.

"About time you got home, Mulder," Krycek said smoothly, slowing his motions even further and wringing a gasp from the woman beneath him. "Dana's been a bit impatient. As I'm sure you can see."

"For what?" Mulder croaked out, not recognizing the voice as his and not caring at all. The look in the other man's eyes was pure seduction.

"I told her I wouldn't let her come until you got here to watch." He punctuated the statement with a sharp, almost vicious thrust and Scully let out a yelp that was need and victory and desire all in one. "So what do you say, Mulder?" With a twitch of his head Krycek issued the official invite, and Mulder's feet took him into the living room without his conscious control. He stopped at the edge of the couch, his eyes seeking hers, seeing in their depths her desperation, her hunger. And something else, glimmering in those ice-blue depths, something he wanted so badly to believe but couldn't bring himself to.

"Take a seat, Mulder," Krycek murmured. "If you're a good boy, maybe we'll let you join in." Startled, Mulder's eyes snapped like elastic away from Scully to lock onto Krycek's sinful green orbs. Desire, mischief, a smug satisfaction – it all radiated from the man like the rays of a sun, and Mulder was nearly blinded by his own response. And then nothing else was said for a long moment. No conversation, anyway. Scully was certainly saying a lot, though her words were more along the lines of "yes, Alex, yes!" and "please" and "you bastard, you promised!" That last one made Krycek grin and stroke both hands from her shoulder blades down until they were resting on the curves of her hips.

"I did, didn't I?" Her head drooped, breaking all eye contact with Mulder as she writhed in need. "What do you think, Mulder? Should I let her come?"

"Oh hell yes," Mulder ground out. The entire day forgotten, the case they'd finished a thing of the past...all Mulder cared about right now was watching his beautiful partner, the woman he loved more than life itself, coming unglued. And the voyeur in him absolutely loved the fact that he got to watch it happen at the hands of the dangerously gorgeous Alex Krycek. He settled back into the couch cushions and watched, eyes flitting between the two, not wanting to miss a thing.

A gentle nudge from Krycek had Scully widening her legs, resting her weight more heavily against the back of the couch. He shifted his own stance, bending his knees slightly to change the angle of his penetration, and by the sounds she was making it had been a damn good move. He'd never known her voice could sound so musical, but her squeals and yelps as she begged sounded more heavenly than all the choirs of angels could have ever hoped to. A part of him was still having trouble believing that he was actually seeing this, but it was quickly drowned out by the sight of Scully leaning forward, tilting her ass up and squealing as Krycek's thrusts became harder, more determined. Mulder watched as the other man's fingers slipped down to stroke her glistening slit, slipping easily between her wet folds. She was close, if the way she'd switched to a constant gasping whimper was any indication. And then Mulder could only stare as Krycek moved his hand, lifting his slick fingers in front of Mulder's mouth. His eyes widened; his breath caught.

"She really does taste divine, Mulder," the green-eyed devil said, his own voice roughened by lust. As if in a trance Mulder leaned forward and closed his lips around the proffered digits, moaning slightly as he tasted her for the first time. His eyes were locked with Krycek's and he watched with an internal grin at each shudder that raced through the other man's taut frame when he swirled his tongue around his fingertips. From his periphery he saw Scully glance up, watching the scene before her, and it seemed that was all that was needed. With a squeal he'd have never imagined coming from her mouth she froze, every muscle locking and trembling as her climax hit.

"Oh fuck," growled Krycek, stopping his movements immediately and closing his eyes, his fingers slipping from Mulder's mouth as he moved both hands to clamp down on Scully's waist. "Son of a bitch..." Mulder could see the way Krycek's muscles tensed, the control he exerted over himself, and he was both extremely aroused by the sight and extremely envious of...well, if he was to be honest, of both of them. It seemed ages that she shuddered and gasped, and then she went limp, her arms folded on the couch back and Krycek's hands on her hips seemingly the only things holding her up. And when she turned her head, her eyes meeting his, everything swirling in their blue depths, he found he couldn't resist. As he'd imagined, fantasized about for so long, he leaned forward slowly, giving her plenty of time to stop him. When his lips brushed hers_ – finally!_ - it seemed he could feel his very soul sigh. Still gasping, she leaned forward, her slightly parted lips inviting him to deepen the kiss. And really, he wasn't strong enough to pass up that kind of invitation. One of his hands reached up to thread itself into her soft hair and then it was his turn to moan when she began to kiss him back.

He wasn't certain how it happened, but he was stretched out on the couch, a very naked and pliant Scully draped over him like a warm, curvy blanket, as their kiss went on and on. Coming up for air briefly he saw with surprise that Krycek – who he'd almost forgotten about – was sitting on the coffee table about two feet away, watching them with an insolent grin as he stroked one hand firmly along his shaft, the length still glistening with Scully's juices. She turned her head as well, seeing what had so captured his attention, before turning back to him and catching his gaze with her own.

"You know, Mulder, I have this theory..." She was slightly breathless, but her tone was serious. Her eyes, however, were dancing with a myriad things – chiefly, amusement and lust.

"What theory?" he whispered, unsure if his voice would carry a louder sound at the moment. She sat up gracefully, shifting until she was sitting directly on his still-clothed erection. The pressure, the heat he could feel even through the material, made him moan and he had to fight to keep his eyes from rolling back in his head.

"That it would be much easier for you to join us if you weren't wearing so many clothes. Don't you think so, Alex?" She glanced sideways at the man on the coffee table, who nodded agreeably.

"Absolutely, Dana my dear." Krycek's voice dropped to a purr. "Besides, if the way you're grinding on him is any indication, I really want to see what he's packing." The two shared a heated grin and then once more Mulder found himself the target of their blazing eyes. With a smooth movement Scully dismounted him to stand beside the couch and he had to clamp his lips shut to stop the disappointed whine that wanted to escape.

"Alex?"

"Yes?"

"I want to watch you undress him."

His eyes widened at her tone, and then she was reaching for his hand, urging him to his feet, and he could only stand there as she settled herself back down in the couch, knees drawn up to her chest. Her hands went behind her head as she leaned back, and the position gave him a perfect view of her pert breasts with their dusky, peaked nipples as well as the glistening, puffy folds of her womanhood, still rosy from the recent friction. He swallowed hard once, and then again because now Krycek was standing in front of him, those damnable green eyes of his hypnotizing Mulder with their lust more surely than any shrink had ever been able to do.

"Relax, Mulder. I don't bite," the other man said with a grin. "Well, at least not unless you ask me to." Krycek's gaze stayed steady as sure, solid fingers reached for the buttons on Mulder's shirt. One by one the buttons opened and then Krycek's hands were pushing the white linen off of his shoulders. Trapped inside those green depths, Mulder inhaled sharply when he felt those same hands slide along his abdomen, tugging his undershirt from the waistband of his slacks and upward, Mulder's arms raising of their own accord to let the garment be pulled off and discarded wherever it may have landed. Krycek stopped then, taking a moment to simply trace his fingers over the smooth skin he'd just uncovered, along the swell of the muscles that shifted with every sharp inhale Mulder made.

"You two are so gorgeous together," Scully whispered on an exhale, drawing his attention to her for a brief moment. Her eyes were wide, her skin flushed, and he realized with shock that she was easily as turned on by Krycek's disrobing of him as he had been watching the other man sliding in and out of her slender body. His attention wasn't able to stay on her for long, however, as the next instant found deft fingers tugging his belt open and out of its loops. His eyes returning to Krycek, he was startled to see the extremely sensual grin on the other man's face as he carefully coiled the belt and placed it within reach on the coffee table.

"May come in handy later," the green-eyed one said with a shrug. And then his fingers were opening the button on Mulder's slacks and he found he couldn't care about anything else. Unable to break that gaze, he felt rather than saw his zipper slide down, felt it when strong fingers pushed his pants down, when they returned to do the same thing to his boxers. The cool air of the room hit his exposed skin and he drew in a breath, watching the smile that curved Krycek's lips and wondering exactly how they'd feel.

"Go ahead, Mulder...kiss him." With that uncanny ability they had to read each other's thoughts, Scully had correctly determined what Mulder wanted. Needed. There was no gentleness this time – her words had broken that bit of restraint. With a growl he grabbed the back of Krycek's neck and hauled him forward, demanding his kiss, his affection – something the other man seemed more than happy to acquiesce to. Not that Krycek was simply a passive partner, oh no. Seconds after their lips fused together, Mulder felt hands grab his ass and haul him even closer, and the feel of his erection sliding against Krycek's where they were trapped between their bodies made him moan. He wasn't sure who was more aggressive, how long they stood there claiming each others' mouths.

A whimper grabbed the mens' attention. As one they turned to the third member of their little trio only to find that she'd shifted positions, stretching out with one leg draped over the back of the couch as her hands occupied themselves, one teasing her own core and the other squeezing her breasts one at a time.

"You should go to her," Krycek whispered in his ear, and Mulder gasped as the other man's hand reached down to rub teasingly along his eager length. It was almost too much, and he knew if he were to join his love on the couch he'd not last long enough to do more than frustrate them both. He needed time to gather his control before he risked it. He shook his head.

"You should. You never did get a chance to finish." Green eyes met hazel, whole conversations being had without a single word being spoken. But then there were words – only they didn't come from either man.

"If someone doesn't get over here and fuck me soon, I'm just going to finish myself off and go home."

Mulder found the demanding tone of her voice more of a turn-on than just about anything else had been in this entire bizarre evening.

"Go on," he said firmly. "Take her." Mulder's tone was serious, but the answering grin and sarcastic salute Krycek snapped – somehow all the more entertaining for the fact that he was naked – made him smile.

When Krycek walked to the couch, Scully reached up and urged him down with her. Mulder, taking deep breaths, took the seat the other man had held earlier, perched on the coffee table to watch their coupling. He could tell Krycek had planned to go slow, to tease her some more, but he'd obviously underestimated the diminutive redhead. As soon as he'd begun to slide his thick length into her, she'd snapped her legs around his waist and yanked him down, effectively slamming him inside her in one rough, fast movement.

"Christ, Dana!" he burst out, groaning as she shifted down further and lifted her hips higher.

"Shut up and fuck me, Alex, or I'll get my gun and blow your damned head off."

Mulder couldn't help it – he burst out laughing.

"I'd listen to her," he warned the other man. "You haven't seen her when she's pissed."

For a moment Krycek didn't move, didn't say anything. Then he looked down at her with a wicked, wicked grin.

"Just remember; you asked for it, little girl. Mulder?" he called out without ever taking his eyes off hers.

"Yeah?"

"Get up here and hold her hands. She wants it so bad, she's gonna get it."

Standing up, he saw the way her eyes widened, lust dilating her pupils until the only blue left was a trace of ice around the darkness. If he'd had even the slightest hint that this wasn't okay, Mulder knew he never would have taken those few steps to the end of the couch. Looking at her, though, all he saw was eagerness...need...a pure desire that nearly took his breath away. Still he had to ask.

"Scully?" He looked down at her and she tilted her head up to meet his eyes.

"Do it, Mulder," she whispered, lifting her arms up above her head. The certainty in her tone let him know that she was perfectly okay with this, and without any further waiting he grasped her tiny wrists in his larger hands. Both of them looked down at the man buried between her thighs. His eyes burned and he braced himself on his hands before leaning down to kiss her. It was gentle; it was sweet. And then he rose up on his knees and started moving and gentle and sweet went out the window.

She squealed...she whined...she begged. And Mulder held her hands, feeling her tense, seeing her arch against the man who was currently making it his life's mission to fuck her straight through the couch. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised at her ability to accept everything Krycek dished out – she was an amazingly tough woman. Still, seeing her five-foot-three form taking his damn near brutal thrusts had Mulder more impressed with her than he had ever been before. And Krycek – god, Mulder had never seen any man so focused, so beautiful in his intensity. No video he'd ever seen, no experience he had ever had even came close to the sheer eroticism of watching his partner – his gorgeous, incredible love – come undone again and then again as Alex Krycek bent her lust to his will. Her hands had turned in his grasp, her fingers wrapping around his own wrists as she built to what even he could tell was going to be a hell of an orgasm; her eyes had lost all focus, her breath came in short, sharp gasps.

"Fuck, Dana," Krycek muttered. Mulder could see he was nearing the end of his own restraint and had he had his hands free he likely would have applauded. Krycek's thrusting got deeper, harder, more erratic, and he could see the other man's muscles tense in preparation. Scully's gasp made them both blink.

"Don't you dare pull out," she snarled, blue eyes focusing fiercely on the green ones above her. Mulder saw Krycek shudder, saw his eyes go wide with surprise.

"Dana, I -" Her lover's gasp was cut off as she suddenly came, howling her pleasure to the room, to the world, her back arching high off the couch. It was too much for Krycek and Mulder watched in awe as the other man slammed forward, burying himself as deep as he could while he groaned his own surrender. They were...sublime was the only word that came to mind. Instinctively knowing he was no longer needed at the moment he released her hands and watched as her arms, shaky as she was shaky, came up to encircle Krycek's shoulders and pull him down to her. Both of them were panting, gasping, yet when their lips met it was with a tenderness that almost brought tears to Mulder's eyes. He sat back down on the coffee table, allowing them their moment together, and mused on the fact that he felt no jealousy, no possessiveness. They were just too amazing together to feel anything negative towards their joining. He watched as their lips parted, as Krycek leaned down to murmur something in her ear, and smiled.

For a while no one moved. Mulder was content to simply sit and watch their closeness, and both of them were too shattered to do more than catch their breath. Eventually Krycek shifted, pulling himself from her depths, and Mulder smirked as he saw her muscles tense with the other man's movement. Krycek sat up and shifted to the other end of the couch, urging Scully to turn around and rest her head on his thigh. She acquiesced with a sigh, and then they both looked at him.

"Mulder," she said softly. He just arched an eyebrow at her, and her hand reached out to him. Languid though the movement was, he could see her desire in her eyes – her desire for him. He followed her unspoken command and joined her on the couch, resting himself above her prone form. She pulled him down to her lips and for a long while they simply lay there in each others' embrace. He could feel her hands on his shoulders, his back, and suddenly he could feel another hand stroking through his hair, tugging the strands every once in a while. Glancing up slightly, he was met with the very sated smile of Alex Krycek.

"Don't keep her waiting," he whispered, his green eyes no less intense for the softness in them. "She's wanted you for long enough." With a shocked expression he glanced back down at the beautiful woman beneath him. Her nod and smile, that smile that always seemed just for him, was all the confirmation he needed.

"Scully..." he whispered, ghosting his lips over her eyes. She sighed happily and wrapped her arms around his back.

"Mulder..." she murmured in response. When she pulled him down for another kiss he went happily, but when she snaked her legs around his waist he paused.

"I just...I want to make sure you're sure," he said, knowing everything he felt was in his eyes and finally not caring that she could see it. Her gaze was soft, and he could see her own emotions shining out at him. The sheer love that gleamed out from the blue had his heart clenching almost painfully, and it brought tears to his eyes.

"Mulder, please...make love to me..?" Her words were soft, her lips softer, and he was lost. When her hand reached down to guide him into her he gasped, then moaned, her hot depths clasping him, feeling so much like coming home that he had to close his eyes against the onslaught of emotions. So tight, so wet, and he could feel the slickness that was hers, that was Krycek's, and the thought struck him that this is what perfection must be if such a thing could exist in the physical realm. He moved slowly, loving the way her inner muscles rippled against his swollen length, loving the feel of her arms around him, her legs around him...loving her so much he felt it would burn him to ash. And he welcomed the burn, welcomed the flames of his own feelings. He was so tired of holding them in, and now he didn't have to. Moving his mouth to her jaw, her neck, he murmured his love for her. He could tell when she finally heard him because she gasped, and on meeting her eyes once more he saw tears glimmering in their sparkling depths.

For a long while he simply held her, loved her, sliding against her so slowly he felt as though he was moving through liquid chocolate. Her skin against his was every truth he'd been searching for. Her whispered sighs and encouragement was the heart of belief. And then he decided he wanted more, he wanted to give her everything she deserved, everything he'd longed to show her for so long but never had the nerve to offer. Reluctantly leaving her snug warmth, he stood on shaky legs and held out his hand to her. She stood, pressing herself flush against him, and he was struck by how small she was, how fragile she felt, and he knew she wasn't and that made it all the more alluring. After a moment spent just holding his miracle against him, he turned to the man that was sitting on the couch still. With one hand around Scully, he held his other hand out to Krycek, who looked up at him with no small amount of surprise in his expression.

"Come with us?" he offered. Krycek paused, looking from one to the other.

"Alex?" she whispered, extending her own hand, and Mulder felt something like rightness when he took their hands, when all three of them stood together. No other words were spoken as he led them into this (amazingly still clean) bedroom. He'd replaced the water bed at some point, and the mattress he laid her down on was so comfortable he could feel her sigh. She scooted back until her head was resting on his pillows – how often had he wished for just that sight? - and with her eyes and arms she beckoned him down with her. As he settled himself between her legs once more, sliding into her with one deep, slow thrust, he watched her eyes flutter closed. The mattress shifted as Krycek stretched out beside them, his hand coming up to brush a strand of hair off of her face.

Time didn't matter. Sometimes hard and fast, sometimes slow and oh-so-languid, Mulder delved into the secrets of her body with more meticulous concentration than he had ever spent on any case he'd ever had. Her every gasp was music, a song just for him, sung in the key of possibilities. Krycek was content to lay beside them, touching them softly, and it added a whole new dimension to the experience to feel the other man's hands sliding over his skin, his lips tracing trails along the backs of his shoulders. And then to watch him as he leaned down to Scully, to kiss her lightly, to suckle her breasts with gentle care, to see her reactions not only to him but to Krycek as they both played over her like the finest of harps – it was nothing short of exquisite. Soon, though, she grew demanding, needy, her body pressing against his as she wordlessly pleaded for completion, for the release she so desperately sought.

He shifted her legs until they were resting high on his back, loving the feel of her strong calves gripping him hard, and began to thrust into her more firmly, the solid slow pounding drawing growls and moans from between her kiss-swollen lips. He suddenly wanted to see those lips wrapped around his cock – or Krycek's, either way – and the image was so strong that he bucked into her harder than he'd planned.

"Yessssss..." she hissed between her teeth. "Mulder, please..."

He could no more have denied her than he could have stopped of his own accord. Soon they were rocking, every thrust smacking the headboard against the wall. Krycek, saying something about how he just 'had to see this', sat back on the mattress and watched, occasionally talking in a low, sensual voice about how sexy they were, urging them on with comments and praise, and the knowledge that those green eyes were roving over every inch of his and Scully's bodies made Mulder shiver with need. She felt it, felt him shudder with every whispered word that fell from the lips of their lover. He knew she'd realized his weakness when she met his eyes with an impish smile.

"God, Mulder, if I'd have known you had a cock like this I'd have mounted you at your desk a long time ago."

He gasped. He stopped moving. Hearing her say something like that, so matter-of-fact, in a voice that had to be the personification of sin itself, with those eyes burning him like wide blue lasers – it nearly drove him over the edge.

"Scully," he gasped, a plea in his voice.

"Make me come, Mulder. Come for me."

With a groan of surrender he gave in to her urging, picking up speed and force as he drove her closer, drove them both closer. She was panting, short little yelps while she dug her nails into his shoulder. She squeezed her muscles around his girth and he cursed her and blessed her in the same sentence, delving deeply into the channel that felt made for him. Her moan was everything erotic. Finally, as he was scrabbling to hold onto his control with his fingertips, he felt her tense.

"Mulder...I love you." Her quiet gasp was then followed by a long, drawn out groan as she exploded around him, and the combination of the words he'd so wished to hear and the almost painful tightness of her grip on his cock demolished the last of his restraint. Driving in hard, deep, he surrendered to her completely, pouring everything he was, everything she had made him, into her even as he poured his words into her ear.

"God, Scully, I love you so much...I have for so long..."

Some time later he reluctantly left her warmth, watching in muted arousal as he pulled out of her, seeing the mixture of their passion slicking his softening length. Her sigh of contentment was everything he'd hoped to hear. Settling down, meeting Krycek's affectionate gaze where he lay on her other side, the three of them curled up together on Mulder's bed and he fell asleep to their warmth and the feeling of absolute peace. It was something he'd never known, and as he drifted off he knew it was something he'd never want to live without.

The alarm clock was harsh, the sound yanking him back to wakefulness with a jerk. Confused, he glanced around, realizing he must have fallen asleep on the couch again. Wait. Couch?

It took a few moments for his brain to catch up to the fact that he must have been dreaming.

_It was...a dream?_

He could still feel her skin, his lips, and the oddness of the entire situation crashed down on him. He'd been dreaming, of Scully – and Krycek? What the fuck?

Resolving to banish the entire thing, to ignore the crushing weight of disappointment – because really, he could understand Scully, but there was _ no damned way_ he would have ever felt fondness towards that backstabbing bastard – he stood and stretched and made his way into the bathroom.

If there was one thing Fox Mulder was good at, it was denial.


End file.
